London stocks lifted by policy action - Financial Times
Last updated: June 15, 2012 10:20 am
Electric Ampera/Volt Range Extender Wins Green Engine Award - The Auto Chanel
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RSSELSHEIM, GERMANY – June 15, 2012: The revolutionary Opel/Vauxhall Ampera and Chevrolet Volt electric vehicles have been given yet more global recognition by the automotive media. Their range extending 1.4-liter engine has won the “International Engine of the Year Award” for the best green engine in a tough field of 45 other “green” contenders. The Ampera and the Volt are the first electric vehicles in the market that can go anywhere anytime. It is also the first time in the 14 year history of the awards that a range extending powertrain has emerged as a winner. The awards ceremony was held in the German city of Stuttgart.
“Until the Volt and Ampera the short range of battery electric vehicles has limited their suitability for everyday use,” said Uwe Winter, Vehicle Line Director and Chief Engineer, who was handed the prize by the British organizers, the Engine Technology International magazine. “Our revolutionary propulsion system removes this obstacle by uniting the environmental friendliness of electric drive with the long range of a combustion engine. And the Best Green Engine Award is the highest recognition of this achievement.”
Seventy-six leading motoring journalists from 35 countries around the world sit on the panel of judges and award prizes in twelve different categories for excellence in powertrain engineering. They agree that this year was one of the toughest to judge so far with 39 all-new engines taking part in the contest.
One of the jury members, Bill McKinnon, explained why there had been strong support for the Ampera/Volt range extender: “Combining pure electric efficiency with petrol versatility and convenience means that this is a leading solution.”
The latest accolade comes against a backdrop of rising global fuel prices, where small, green and electric powertrains are playing an increasingly prominent role in the international automotive trade.
A 16 kWh lithium ion battery powers the 111kW/150 hp electric motor of the Ampera/Volt. Depending on the style of driving and road conditions, distance of between 40 and 80 kilometers can be covered in the purely battery-operated mode, completely free of emissions. The wheels of the car are always powered electrically. In extended-range mode, which activates whenever the battery has reached its minimum state of charge, power is seamlessly inverted to the electric drive unit from a generator driven by the 1.4-liter, 63 kW/86 hp gasoline engine. Extended-range mode enables a total driving range of more than 500 kilometers without refueling.
The Ampera and Volt together have won numerous international awards including the “World Green Car of the Year 2011” and have just been named the European “Car of the Year 2012”. There have also been accolades for safety like the maximum 5-star Euro NCAP award. Last year, the propulsion system of the Volt was named one of the ten best engines for North America by Ward’s automotive magazine.
London 2012 Olympics: French portray GB athletes as fat darts players - Daily Telegraph
He said: "They are a homage to English popular culture. The public awaits the next ads religiously, wondering, 'What will they think up next?'" As for the reaction across the Channel, Mr Gaultier said there has been little because Leg's advertisements do not appear in England.
Eurostar's advertisements here tend to focus on the means of transportation rather than events on the other side of the water, said Mr Gaultier.
He added: "High–speed trains are not particularly exotic in France. We are used to it after 30 years. For the English, however, it is still absolutely new."
Catherine Bayles, a Eurostar spokesman, said: "This new campaign has been created by French advertising agency Leg to celebrate Eurostar's partnership with the London 2012 Games.
"It has been running in France this week – a tongue–in–cheek campaign playing on the age–old Franco–British rivalry."
London 2012: Tim Brabants 'back to his old self' after injury - BBC News
Tim Brabants can successfully defend his Olympic title at London 2012 despite a "career-threatening" injury, according to Britain's canoeing chief.
Brabants, 35, won gold in the K1 1000m sprint canoe event at Beijing 2008 but had major shoulder surgery last year.
He was named to Team GB for his fourth consecutive Olympics on Thursday having won a selection battle for his place.
Analysis: GB medal hopes
Tim Brabants is coming into form at the right time after his injury but look to the men's 200m sprint distances for Britain's best hopes of gold.
Ed McKeever won the 2010 world title in the K1 200m class, adding silver in 2011, while Liam Heath and Jon Schofield also won silver in the two-man K2 event that year alongside the European title. The trio should earn Britain two medals at the Games.
GB's women's K4 boat finished fourth at the 2011 World Championships. The four-woman event is seen as the priority over individual races for Rachel Cawthorn and Jess Walker and the ever-improving crew are capable of a medal.
In the men's C1 races, talent ID success Rich Jefferies will be aiming to reach the finals and is considered a hotter prospect for Rio 2016.
Performance director John Anderson said Brabants "looked like he was back to his old self" in the deciding race.
Brabants outclassed rival Paul Wycherley at the World Cup in Duisburg, Germany - the third and final selection race for the British Olympic team - to claim the one spot available to a Briton in the men's K1 1000m at London 2012.
"A career-threatening injury two years ago really put him behind where he wanted to be," Anderson told BBC Sport.
"We're talking a serious injury. Last year was difficult for Tim with his rehab and he basically didn't have enough time to get back.
"I think it's the measure of an Olympic champion to come through that adversity and deliver the performances. Tim's aspiration is to go out and defend his Olympic title. On his day, he's capable of challenging the podium in London."
Wycherley, 26, went to the 2011 World Championships instead of a struggling Brabants after beating the latter in a one-off selection race last summer.
Speaking as his place on the GB team for the Olympics was announced, Brabants said: "[For the past year] I've been fighting off the back foot more than in previous years, because of the shoulder surgery I had. Now we're back where we want to be.
"Four years later, it doesn't get any easier. We know what we did to achieve what we did in Beijing - the training, the work and the mental preparation - now it's following a similar pattern but it's harder, because I'll need to go faster to win in London."
Reigning world champion Adam van Koeverden of Canada, Norway's Eirik Veraas Larsen and Australia's Ken Wallace are among the candidates looking to challenge Brabants this summer.
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